The Arabian Travel Market 2015 (ATM), which opens in Dubai, UAE, next week, is expected to be 10 per cent larger than the previous event, a senior official has said.

The biggest travel show in the region will be held from May 4 to 7 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. ATM is part of Reed Exhibitions' WTM portfolio, which also includes the World Travel Market in London, UK; WTM Latin America in Sao Paulo, Brazil; and WTM Africa in Cape Town, South Africa.

Speaking to Travel and Tourism News at the successful conclusion of WTM Latin America in Sao Paulo,  Craig Moyes, portfolio director of Reed Travel Exhibitions, said ATM is the fastest growing event in the company’s tourism portfolio.

He said ATM this year is seeing growth despite the difficult political and economic situation the region.

More than 2,700 companies from across the tourism spectrum will showcase their products and services to the expected 33,000 visitors from all over the world at the ATM.

Moyes said the third WTM Latin America, which concluded last week, had seen a 21 per cent growth in visitor numbers and was on the way to becoming a leading global event.

More than 5,500 travel trade visitors, including almost 1,500 buyers and hosted buyers from Brazil, Latin America and rest of the world were there to negotiate business deals, make new contacts and network with an array of destinations, service providers and product managers on the exhibition floor.

“I hope this event matches the success of WTM London and the ATM in Dubai in the years to come,” Moyes said.

Lawrence Reinisch, exhibition director, WTM Latin America, said: “We’re absolutely delighted with the visitor, buyer and media attendance figures for this year. These figures demonstrate the power and importance of WTM Latin America to the industry and the role it plays in facilitating business for the sector.”

The next WTM Latin America will take place from March 29 to 31, 2016. - TradeArabia News Service